The council makes 14 recommendations for a made-in-B.C. strategy to protect the salmon, including restoring habitat, increasing production of juvenile salmon, supporting value-added fishing opportunities and tourism and working with Indigenous communities on harvest and conservation goals.

The release of the report coincides with the declaration of the International Year of the Salmon, and federal Fisheries Minister Jonathan Wilkinson also introduced his government’s five-year plan to help rebuild Pacific wild salmon populations and their habitats.

“Our government will continue to protect this species, which has such cultural, social and economic significance for Canadians,” Wilkinson said. “Together, we can help rebuild these stocks for the benefit of our entire ecosystem and for generations to come.”